Crispy Pork Egg Rolls with Sweet Chili Sauce
A cabbage-and-pork filling rolled tight in a wrapper and deep-fried until the shell crackles — built for a platter, not a single plate.
- Serves
- 6
- Prep
- 40 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Written
Method
-
Brown the pork in a hot skillet, breaking it into small crumbles, until no pink remains.
-
Add the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
-
Stir in the cabbage and carrot and cook until wilted and the pan is nearly dry.
-
Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, and cornstarch and cook, stirring, until the mixture clumps together rather than looking wet. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.
-
Lay a wrapper in a diamond orientation and spoon ¼ cup of filling just below center. Fold the bottom corner over the filling, fold in the sides, then roll up tightly, sealing the top corner with beaten egg.
-
Heat the oil in a deep pot to 350°F.
-
Fry the egg rolls in batches of four, turning occasionally, until deep golden brown and blistered, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain on a wire rack.
-
Serve hot with sweet chili sauce for dipping.
Notes
The filling has to be dry before it goes anywhere near a wrapper — any standing liquid steams the wrapper from the inside and it never crisps, no matter how hot the oil is. Cook the cabbage down until the skillet looks nearly bare, not just wilted.
Egg rolls hold at room temperature for a couple of hours before frying, wrapped under a damp towel so the skins don’t crack. If you’d rather not deal with a pot of oil, they also crisp well in an air fryer at 400°F, brushed with oil, for about 10 minutes.